Together
by SummerRain626
Summary: What if Abby had been with her dad, Rick Grimes, and brother, Carl, after the prison attack? How would things be different for her? For them? (Abby is my O/C from other stories)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, except Abby!**

* * *

 _As we were walking away, a gunshot was heard so Carl and I both turned around to look at the scene._

 _"_ _Don't look back." My dad said making both of us look at him. "Just keep walking."_

 _That was our home for so long. I thought as we moved on. I sure hope everyone is okay._

* * *

"Carl, slow down." My dad said bringing me back to reality. I was thinking about what happened with the prison and all.

I was helping my dad walk, Carl was way ahead of us. I don't know what his problem is. I don't know if he's upset with me or our dad…or if he's just upset about losing our home and possibly all of our friends. That one is more likely.

"Carl, stop!" My dad yelled again. Carl finally stopped in his tracks. We caught up with him. "We need to stay together. We got to find a place with food, supplies."

Carl was just ignoring him the whole time.

"Hey." My dad put his hand on Carl's shoulder. "We're gonna be—

He trailed off after the look Carl gave him. _Okay, so I guess he's mad at our dad. At least it's not me._

Carl started walking again without saying anything to either of us. My dad sighed and glanced at me, I gave him a sympathetic look.

He touched the back of my head for a second. "Come on."

* * *

We kept walking until we found a little bar. Maybe we will find some food inside.

"Wait outside, okay?" My dad said to us, specifically Carl. "Keep watch."

"You keep watch." Carl snapped. "You can barely stand. I'm not gonna let you go in there alone."

"Excuse me?" My dad said roughly.

I just watched the two nervously. This wasn't like them. Carl never talks back to our dad.

"We've done this before. I'm gonna help you clear it." Carl held his gun up and snapped. "You should just let me do it myself."

My dad looked mad. He was about to say something, but I spoke first. "I'll keep watch." I said quickly and nodded. "You two go in, I'll stay here. Okay?" I looked at both of them. Carl just looked at my dad, he eventually sighed and gave in. "Let's go." He said.

As I was waiting outside, I heard a bit of a commotion inside then a gunshot followed by my dad's voice. "I said not to." He said.

"You couldn't do it with the ax!" I heard Carl yell even louder.

 _Yeah, they're obviously not worried about bringing walkers down on us with all their yelling._ I thought annoyed.

* * *

We moved on. The boys were able to find some food in there after all. It wasn't much but it was something.

We found a little neighborhood. Once again, Carl was way ahead of us. I'm going to have to talk to him. Maybe I can get through to him and find out what's really bothering him.

I suddenly got a little dizzy and almost lost my balance. "Whoa."

"You okay?" My dad asked me.

"Yeah, just a little dizzy spell is all." I smiled.

He gave me a concerned look. "You just got over being really sick. You should take it easy."

" _We_ should take it easy." I corrected him.

"Right." He sighed. "Hey." He called to Carl but of course he ignored him.

"Hey." My dad said again. "Hey."

"Carl!" I called getting annoyed. Carl finally stopped and turned to face us.

"That one's as good as any." My dad said pointing to a house.

My dad opened the door cautiously and we looked around before going in. The first room was clear. I sort of followed my dad but Carl went in a different direction.

"Carl." My dad scolded.

"I got it. All the doors down here are open." Carl said walking down a hallway.

"Just stop!" My dad yelled.

My brother stopped and turned to face my dad. I was anticipating another argument.

"Hey, asshole!" Carl finally yelled and pounded on the wall. My eyes widened. "Hey, shitface! Hey—

"Watch your mouth!" My dad scolded him again. I let out a nervous giggle that I was holding in, but immediately stopped once my dad sent me a glare.

"Are you kidding me?" Carl said annoyed. "If there's one of them down there, they would have come out." With that said, he walked away up the stairs.

My dad looked lost and a little hurt.

"Sorry, daddy." I said.

"He hates me."

"He doesn't hate you."

"Well, he's mad at me."

"Yeah, no shit."

"Hey, you watch your mouth, too, kid."

I rolled my eyes but smiled. "I'm gonna go try to talk to him."

I walked upstairs and found Carl in one of the rooms.

"Hey." I said. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Trying to find something useful."

I sighed and looked around. There were a bunch of video games on a TV stand. I picked one of them up and looked at it. "Well…I doubt you'll find anything in here." I found another one that was a racing game. We used to have it. Carl and I would play all the time, he never beat me. I smiled at the memory. "Check that out." I threw it to him. He looked at it and chuckled.

"We had a lot of fun with that, right?"

"We sure did." He laughed. "Remember that ugly, old lady with the mushroom haircut?"

I laughed loudly. "I forgot about that. But what about their awful names? Remember the one player named Cark?"

My brother laughed out loud. "Yeah, I do remember that. Who the hell names their kid that?"

We continued laughing.

"I miss my Xbox sometimes." Carl admitted.

"Yeah, well…you never would have had one if it wasn't for me." I smiled and put my arm around him. I remember my brother asking for one for Christmas one year. My parents had simply said no because it was too expensive. They were dealing with a lot of medical bills, thanks to me. Anyway, I had saved money from my job specifically so I could buy Carl an Xbox because I knew how bad he wanted one. I'll never forget the expression on his face when he opened it…or my parents for that matter. I smiled at the memory.

"I know." Carl said bringing me out of my reverie. Something suddenly changed in my brother. "But…none of that matters anymore. We'll never play another video game again. So…" He got up and knocked them off the stand and started cutting the wires.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm gonna use them to secure the door."

After he got what he wanted, he headed back downstairs. I sat there sadly for a moment. Seeing a glimpse of the old Carl made me feel sad. I feel so bad for my little brother that he has to grow up in this world. I mean…he's not even the age I was yet when all this started.

* * *

Later on, I was putting a blanket over the window when I heard my dad say, "find anything?"

Carl didn't respond, he was tying the door shut. I only spoke because I felt bad. "I found some books. Not really anything important, though."

My dad nodded. "I checked the back door."

"Good." I said and went back to the windows.

He started moving the couch.

"I tied the door shut." Carl said.

"We don't need to take any chances." My dad said and continued to move the couch in front of the door.

"You don't think it'll hold?"

"Carl." My dad scolded. I turned around to watch the scene before me.

"It's a strong knot." He snapped. "Clove hitch. Shane taught me. Remember him?"

I gasped and my eyes widened. _How could he say something like that to our dad? That was just horrible and completely uncalled for!_ I'd like to grab him by the ear right now and drag him in the other room to beat his ass!

"Yeah, I remember him." My dad finally said. "I remember him every day."

There was a brief silence and I could tell Carl felt a little guilty for saying what he did. And he should.

"There something else you want to say to me?" My dad said roughly.

For a second, I thought my dad _was_ going to drag Carl in the other room and beat his ass. "Help me move the couch." Thankfully, that ended when Carl decided to drop it and helped my dad move the couch in front of the door. My dad was breathing heavily after that and I did not like the sound of it. However, I didn't say anything because I didn't want to alarm my little brother.

"This'll have to do for the night." My dad said. He pulled out a bag of chips from his bag and handed it to Carl.

"You gonna have some?" Carl asked my dad.

"You should eat." My dad said. "Both of you."

"We should save it." Carl snapped.

I rolled my eyes. _Why does everything have to be an argument with these two._

My dad was trying to open the bag and was struggling. I was about to help him when Carl ripped the bag out of his hands, opened it and then threw it at him. I was surprised at the way he was treating him and I was even more surprised that my dad was letting him. "Hey." My dad held the bag out.

"I don't want any." Carl said.

"Eat it." My dad said sternly and threw the bag down. "Now." He walked away.

Carl glanced at me. I shrugged. "Maybe you should just have some."

He looked at me like I was the dumbest thing ever. "Whose side are you even on?"

"I'm not on anyone's side, Carl, but he's our fuckin' dad. So…just listen to him, just this once."

"Oh yeah, because you're so good at that."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I said apathetically because I knew I was going to lose.

"You never listened to them." Carl stated. "Before all this. You…you were just a problem child. Getting in trouble all the time."

I didn't have a response to that. It was the truth and it hurt my feelings. "He worries about you, about _us._ You should think about that instead of all this arguing and getting mad at dad. He just wanted you to eat something."

"I'm not hungry." He snapped again.

I sighed. "Do what you want, Carl." I said softly and left to go find my dad.

I found him in the bathroom, he had his shirt off. I gasped at the site of his injuries. "Daddy?" He hurriedly put his shirt back on when he heard me. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." He nodded.

"Don't lie to me!" I snapped. "I'm not a child." Although, I did feel close to tears. "You're not fine. Anyone with eyes can see it."

"I know. I'm sorry. Shhh."

I sniffled. "What happened back there?"

My dad hesitated then nodded. "I fought the Governor. I thought I had him."

"He did a real number on you." I stated. "No one can call that guy a pussy."

"Don't say that, kid." My dad said. "I don't like hearing you talk like that."

I was about to tell him I'm an adult, but instead put my head down. "Sorry."

There was a brief silence.

"Listen, sweetheart," my dad started, "if I don't make it, if I die…you're gonna have to—

"No, dad, don't say that!" I shook my head.

"Hey, hey." He grabbed my face with both of his hands. "You wanted me to be straight with you well I'm being straight with you. You're gonna have to do it. I can't have me hurt either one of you. I don't think it can be Carl."

My eyes widened as I realized what my dad just told me. That's a huge responsibility he just put on me. But…I can do it. He's right, I have to protect my brother. I took a deep breath and nodded. My dad hugged me tightly and kissed my forehead. It was so hard not to cry. I just hugged him back.

* * *

A little later, we were all sitting in the living room. My dad was sitting on the couch going through some supplies. I was cleaning my knife and I don't even know what Carl was doing. No one was talking. "Where are the keys?" My dad said out of the blue.

I didn't say anything because I really didn't know what he was talking about. I didn't take any keys. "What did you guys do with the keys?" He asked again. I looked up at him this time.

"I don't know." Carl said. My dad turned to me.

"I'm pretty sure he gave them back to you." I said.

"What do you mean me?" Carl snapped at me. "I never touched them. You're the one that had them!"

I gave him a stupid look. "You're such a liar." I said. "Dad gave them to you to check the back door."

"He gave them to you and then you gave them to me." Carl said. "I know, I remember. I don't have a memory problem." He snapped. That pissed me off.

"Carl." My dad scolded.

I stood up. "Well, apparently you do because you can't remember what you did with the keys. And don't start getting smart with me because I'm not the one to do that to."

Carl stood up and walked over to me. "I'll talk to you however I want, you're not my mom."

"Stop." My dad said.

"You called _me_ a problem child earlier." I laughed. "You've been treating dad like shit all day. If I were him, I'd beat the shit outta you."

"Well, you aren't him. You're the farthest thing from him. And you treated both of them bad!"

"Me?" My eyes widened. "What about how you were with mom before she died. You think she liked that?"

"Stop it now." My dad said.

"You argued with her all the time before this!"

"Oh, shut up." I said annoyed. "Quit bringing up stupid shit from the past. You started an argument over something stupid, too! You had those keys last and you know it. I saw you give them back to dad."

"I didn't start nothing, stupid idiot!"

"Enough you two!" My dad said. We continued to ignore him.

I laughed. "Wow, how mature. Why don't you just go to bed, kid?" I smirked.

"Why don't you? Dumbass."

"Oh right." I raised my eyebrows. "I'm the dumbass."

"You are! You—

"You can't even admit that you took the damn keys!" I yelled. I was getting really annoyed and sick of hearing his voice. I was pretty fired up and pissed off now. It's not good when I get like that.

"Shut up!" My dad said. "Both of you."

I turned my attention to my dad. "Why? Does this annoy you?" I snapped. "Well, now you know how I felt when I had to listen to you and mom argue all the time when I was little. Or when you had me be your messenger because you two were too immature to just talk to each other."

"Abigail, don't talk to me like that, I'm your father." My dad said roughly.

"Yeah, and you said I treat him like shit." Carl said.

I turned back to him angry as ever. "You did! All day! That's all you've been doing is ignoring him or giving him smart answers! Don't try to tell me!"

"You're just as bad!"

"No, I'm not! Not at all!"

"I bet you that—

"Shut the hell up!" My dad yelled silencing both of us. He was right next to us and grabbed both of our arms. He started walking us over to the wall. "If you two are gonna act like children, then I'm gonna treat you like children." He put Carl in one of the corners in the room. I almost laughed. "Stay there and don't move." He directed him. Surprisingly, he listened. My dad walked me over to the other corner and tried to put me there, but I turned the other way.

"You ain't giving me no timeout." I said crossing my arms over my chest. "I'm almost eighteen."

"Hmm." My dad said. "Would you rather go over my knees?"

My face flushed. I couldn't believe he said that. Then, I shook that thought and laughed. "Ha. Yeah, right? You're all broken right now. I'd be down the street before you even raised your hand." I laughed and took a few steps back.

"You really wanna find out?" He was giving me a serious look. I just stood there. He finally reached for my arm but I pulled back.

"No." I said with a grin. "I'll get in the corner." I walked back over to the wall. He put his hands on my shoulders and gently pushed me so I was closer.

"Don't talk to each other." He said. I heard him sit down on the couch. A few minutes had passed with it being completely silent in the room. This felt weird. I can't even remember the last time I was in timeout. Surely it was before I was a double-digit age.

"So…how long do we have to stand like this?" I asked my dad.

"Well, it was going to be five minutes but now it's ten because you talked." My dad answered me.

Carl sighed. "Way to go, Abby." He snapped.

"Shut up!" I said. "He said don't talk to each other not don't talk at all."

"Now it's fifteen." My dad said. "Keep it up. Keep acting like little kids."

I sighed. My dad is right. I'm the older one, I should have prevented this whole thing. I just stood there with my head down. It was quiet for a few minutes.

"And you kids better find those keys." My dad said.

"Dad, you have them." I said.

"No, I do not."

"Yes, you do." I turned around to face him. "They're in your pocket."

He gave me a look but checked his pockets anyway. What do you know? He had the damn keys the whole time. He held them up. "Oh. Yeah, they _are_ here."

"What?" Carl said and turned around.

"Told you." I rolled my eyes.

"Alright, both of you come over here." He said. We both walked over to him. "I want an apology from both of you and then you two will apologize to each other."

"No." Carl said immediately. "I didn't do anything wrong."

I huffed. _Really?_

"I'm not dealing with this right now." My dad said angrily. "Do what I—

"How can you take care of us when you can't even take care of yourself?" I said. I was just joking, though.

My dad gave me a surprised look. "Excuse me, young lady? What's that supposed to mean?"

I put my hands up. "I don't know. I just always wanted to say that to someone." I said quickly. He looked at me for a moment.

"She's not wrong, though." Carl said.

"I was just joking." I admitted.

"I'm not." Carl said. He walked away then ran upstairs. My dad sighed then looked at me.

"Sorry." I said.

He swallowed before speaking. "You know, Abby, you're older. I expect you to be the mature one."

I smirked but quickly wiped it away. "I know, I'm sorry."

He sighed again. "And I don't need that smart talk from you. It's bad enough I'm getting it from your brother right now."

"How many times do you want me to apologize, dad?" I joked.

"As many times as it takes for it to sink in."

I smiled. "I know. I'm sorry I said all that stuff to you. Really, I am."

He opened his arms and embraced me in a hug. I returned it. My dad kissed my temple twice. I felt him pull my shirt down in the back for me.

We both sat on the couch together, my dad had his arm around me. "Hey, I'm sorry about what mom and I did to you." I looked at him. "I didn't realize what I was putting on you."

I could tell from the look on his face that he really felt bad about that. It made me feel guilty. "Oh, it's okay, daddy." I reassured him. "I know that. I was mad before. You know how I used to get? I didn't mean to bring it up."

"Well, it must be bothering you then." He said, he rubbed my arm. "And the arguing. I'm sorry you had to hear that. Do you think about that a lot? Is it really bothering you?"

I had my head down. "Uh, no…not really. But there is something in particular." He was giving me a weird look. I cleared my throat and turned so I was facing him a little better. "I…I remember an argument you guys had when I was like five or six where you stormed out of the house and…I'm pretty sure it was about me."

My dad gave me a sad look then sighed. "I remember that."

"You remember?" My eyes widened a little. "What was it about? I never could remember." I was desperate to find out. I really needed to know. My dad gave me a strange look. "Just tell me." I said.

My dad sighed yet again. "It was about your medical bills. You were just sick all the time. And then your mom told me you wanted to take music lessons and I just…didn't know how we would afford it. I hated telling you guys no."

I just looked at him. "Oh." I finally said. I looked down sadly. _I always knew I was just one big problem._

"…but, uh…it wasn't all you, baby." My dad tried. "I had a really bad day at work, people were being idiots and then there was…that."

I nodded.

"Hey." He lifted my chin so I had to look at him. "You're not gonna be upset over this, are you?"

I had to think about the question. I shrugged. "I hope not."

He gave me a dissatisfied look. "Please, don't be. It was so long ago and I'm sorry."

I nodded and forced a smile. "Thanks, daddy. You know you're my best friend." I moved closer to him, he wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead.

"So…were you really going to spank me?" I asked.

"No." He laughed. "Have I ever before?"

"No but you were so serious!"

"You're way too old for that."

"You put us in timeout." I pointed out.

"That's because you were acting like children."

I put my arms out as if to say, "what's the difference then?"

"Well, what? You want me to?"

I gave him a surprised look. He caught me completely off guard. "…"

He grabbed me and tried to put me over his knees. I laughed and pulled away. "No, dad, stop."

"Come here then." He kept trying to get me over there.

"No, daddy." I giggled and pulled back. He finally stopped and laughed then kissed my cheek a bunch of times.

Just then, Carl came downstairs and into the room. He gave us a look then sat down on the other side of the room.

* * *

"We should turn in." My dad suggested. We were all in the living room. Carl had taken one of the couch cushions and made himself a small bed on the floor. My dad had the couch. _Where the hell am I supposed to sleep?_ Suddenly, I remembered what my dad told me earlier: _if I don't make it, if I die…You're gonna have to do it…I don't think it can be Carl._ The words were just playing over and over in my head, haunting me…

"Uhh…maybe one of us should keep watch." I suggested.

"Why?" Carl sounded annoyed. "I'm pretty sure the door is secure enough."

"…yeah, well…shit can still happen."

My dad gave me a look, which I ignored. I shook my head. "Look, I'll keep watch. You guys sleep."

"Suit yourself." Carl said and rolled over.

I nodded then looked over at my dad. He gave me a small smile. It was a sad attempt. I just nodded back at him. It's going to be a long night, but…I have to stay awake in case my dad turns.

* * *

It was the worst night ever. I tried to find something to keep me busy, but it was almost impossible to keep my mind off sleep. I could barely keep my eyes open by the time Carl got up.

"Abby, you can go to sleep now." Carl said to me.

I was leaning against the wall. "Okay." I mumbled. I slowly stood up and made my way towards the stairs.

"You can have my spot."

"Nah, fuck that. I need a real bed."

"Well…don't take the cool room with all the video games." Carl called. "I got dibs."

"Whatever." I called back. I'm surprised I made it up the stairs. I don't think I have ever been this tired before. I took the master bedroom because it had the nicest bed and practically collapsed.

* * *

I don't know how long I slept, but I have a feeling it wasn't very long. Still, it was better than before. The reason I awoke, though, was because I heard yelling; it sounded like my brother, then a door close. I got up out of bed and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Then, I tiptoed downstairs.

"Carl?" I called. No answer. I walked into the room and there was no sign of him, but my dad was still asleep on the couch. I decided not to wake him. I looked around the house but still did not find my brother. _Where could be? Please don't tell me he went outside!_ I looked out the window but still didn't see him. This is not good.

By that time, I figured I should wake up my dad. He will probably be mad that he slept this long.

I gently started to shake his arm. "Dad. Come on, time to wake up." He didn't budge. "Dad? Daddy?" I swallowed hard. "Daddy? Daddy!" I shook him harder. Why isn't he waking up? "Daddy, please! Please wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" I stood up and took a deep breath. _Calm down, Abby._ I got down on my knees in front of him and put my head on his chest. I sighed in relief at the slow _ba-bump_ of his heart. He's still alive, just in a coma or something.

I sat back and calmed myself down. "What do I do?" I said out loud. _I know! Water!_ I got a bottle of water out of my bag and found a washcloth in the bathroom. I wet it and put it on my dad's forehead. Maybe that will help.

I guess now I'll just wait for Carl to come back.

Suddenly, I felt angry. How could that boy do this to me? Leave without telling me and especially at a time like this. Our dad is in a freaking coma! I contemplated going to look for him but decided it best to just stay here. But when he gets home…he's in so much trouble!

* * *

I looked out the window, the sky is getting dark. God, I hope he's okay. Both of them. I glanced over at my still unconscious dad. Please come home, Carl. If he's not already dead, I'm going to kill him. _Jeez, maybe I shouldn't joke about that._ "Okay, okay, just chill, Abby." I laid down on the half-assed bed Carl made. It's actually kind of comfortable. I closed my eyes.

I must have dosed off because the sound of a door opening and footsteps woke me up. I immediately grabbed my gun and waited. Carl emerged from around the corner, my shoulders slumped and I sighed in relief.

"CARL GRIMES!" I was on my feet in a second and walking over to him. "Where the hell have you been?"

"I-I went to find supplies."

"Yeah? Without telling me?" I screamed.

"You were asleep. A-and you're not my mom."

Something inside me snapped after that. "I'm the closest thing you've got!" I took a step closer to him. "And if you haven't noticed, dad is in a coma."

"I know." He said quietly.

"What? You knew and you still left?" I put my hands up. "Okay, I really wanna beat your ass right now. Don't you EVER leave again without telling me or dad. Is that clear?"

"I'm not a little kid. I don't have—

"Being a kid has nothing to do with it!" I cut him off. "Would I do that to you? Would _dad_ do that to _us?"_

"No." Carl put his head down.

"No, he wouldn't."

"I feel really bad."

"Good! You should!" I turned around and took a deep breath. "God, Carl how could you do that to me?" I was close to tears. "I was so worried. You _and_ dad. I can't…I can't do that."

"I'm sorry." He walked closer to me. "I'm really sorry, Abby."

I sighed. "It's okay. Just don't ever do it again, all right?"

He nodded and to my surprise, he hugged me. It's usually me that hugs him first. I hugged him back tightly and kissed his cheek.

"All right." I let him go. "Let's go check in on dad."

He nodded and as he was walking away, I gave him a smack on his butt.

"Ow." He said. "That actually hurt."

"Good." I smirked.

* * *

It was now pitch black outside and Carl and I were sitting in the living room. He had his head on my shoulder and I was playing with his hair. I think it was putting him to sleep, I was a little tired myself.

"Hey, kiddo, why don't you go on up to bed? I got this." I reassured him.

"No, I'm not leaving you…again."

I just looked at him for a minute before giving him a sideways grin.

Suddenly, our attention was brought to our dad. His breathing changed and then his hand moved. We shared a look of fear. He started moving and moaning kind of like walkers do. I felt all the blood drain from my face and it felt like I was punched in the stomach. _It's happening._

Carl gasped and we both moved away from the couch.

"Carl. Stay back." I pulled my gun out.

"No."

"You know what happens." I said sadly. I pointed my gun at "my dad." He fell off the couch and was coming closer.

"Wait." Carl stopped me. "I'll do it."

I hesitated. "…no." I shook my head. "You put mom down. No reason why you should have to do both of them."

I felt his hand on my arm. "I have to. After the way I treated him. Please…"

I thought about what he said…and…I understood. I handed him my gun. "Quickly."

He stood his ground and pointed it at our "dad." It was coming closer. I started breathing heavily and shaking. Tears were involuntarily streaming down my face and I wondered why Carl was being so hesitant. He was crying pretty hard. I was about to take the gun off him. I felt like an idiot. I'm so irresponsible.

"Carl." I said. It was struggling to make its way closer to us on the floor. Finally, it grabbed my brother's foot.

"Carl!" My eyes were super wide.

"I can't." He cried and put the gun down. "I was wrong. Just do it." He put his head back and looked away.

I don't think he was talking to me and it about killed me. I was about to grab the gun but I heard the best sound that I ever heard in my life.

"Kids." My dad said. Carl and I just stared at my dad. "Don't go outside. Stay safe." Then he rolled over and passed out again. I couldn't believe it!

"He's alive!" I cried. "Alive!"

I put my arm around Carl and grabbed my dad's hand. My brother and I cried together.

"I'm scared." Carl said quietly. "I'm scared. I'm scared."

"Don't be." I whispered and kissed his head. "We're gonna be okay now."

* * *

"You shouldn't have risked it, going out there like that." My dad told Carl. "It's dangerous."

It was morning and the three of us were sitting there on the living room floor talking. My dad was in the middle with his arms around us.

"I was careful." Carl replied. "And don't worry. Abby already took care of me. She yelled worse than mom…and she spanked me."

"What?" My dad gave me an amused look.

"That's right." I crossed my arms. "I don't think he'll be running off again anytime soon."

"Did he say he was sorry?"

"What? You're taking her side?" Carl said. "She hit me."

"Hmm…I guess he just likes me better than you." I shrugged.

My dad laughed. "All right. You," he pointed at Carl. "No more running off and you," he pointed at me, "no spankin' your brother. Although I bet it was pretty funny."

"It's a shame ya missed it." I smiled.

Carl glared at us.

"I'm just kidding." My dad laughed. "It's good that you found more food."

"I found even more. But I ate it." Carl said.

"What was it?" Asked my dad.

"112 ounces of pudding." Carl laughed.

I grimaced. "How in God's name did you eat—you know what, never mind. I don't wanna know."

My dad chuckled at us. Then there was a brief pause.

"I know we'll never get things back to the way they used to be." My dad said breaking the silence.

"What?" Carl asked him. I just gave him a questioning look.

"I only clung to that for you. For Judith. Now she's…gone." My dad put his head down. I became saddened.

"And you…you're a man, Carl." My dad said. "You're a man. I'm sorry."

"You don't need to be." Carl gave our dad a small smile. I smiled at the two of them.

Our nice moment was soon broken up by a knock on the door. It was so quiet that hearing that made all three of us jump.

My dad was the first to react. "Stay back." He told us.

Carl and I both held our guns up. My dad looked out the peep hole then started to laugh. Carl and I shared a look. _Has he gone crazy?_

"What?" Carl finally asked.

My dad looked at my brother and said, "It's for you."

I was so confused. I looked out the window and gasped. It was Michonne!


	2. Chapter 2

The sound of Michonne's voice woke me up. "Do you have something to say about my extremely comfortable and attractive shirt?" She said to Carl.

"Damnit." I whispered. I'm never going to get any sleep around here.

"No, no, no. It looks great." Carl said. "Oh, you missed a—" He pointed at her shirt. I guessed referring to a button. I just laid there listening to their conversation because there was no way I was getting back to sleep.

"I wish we had some soy milk." Michonne said pouring herself some cereal.

"Seriously?" Carl grimaced.

"Yes, seriously. Have you ever tried it?"

"My best friend in third grade, he was allergic to dairy."

"Uh-huh."

"And every day he would bring this soy stuff to lunch. I tried it."

"And?"

"I threw up." Carl giggled. It made me laugh a little, too.

"Oh, yeah, right." Michonne chuckled.

"All right, all right. I almost threw up. But I was like, ugh."

I laughed at how dramatic he was.

"It was so gross. I mean, literally, I would rather have powdered milk than to have to drink that stuff again. I would rather have Judith's formula—

Things became serious again at the mention of Judith.

"I'm gonna go finish my book." Carl said leaving the room. "I only have a couple chapters left."

 _Poor Carl._ I thought sadly. He misses Judy. We all do.

Michonne walked into the kitchen so I got up and went to the table and ate some of their dry cereal.

"Thank you." I heard my dad say to her. "I heard him laughing in there. Almost forgot what that sounded like. I can't be his father and his best friend. He needs you. I know that's a lot to throw at you. So if you're ever feeling like you need a break…"

"I'm done taking breaks." Michonne said.

I ate and listened to _their_ conversation now. I love eavesdropping.

"So what's the plan?" Michonne asked. "This place, is it home or just a stop along the way?"

"Well, let's…let's just stay here while we figure it out." My dad replied. I nodded. There was a brief silence.

"Well, we'll need more supplies. I'll go with Carl and get some."

"I'll come, too." My dad said.

"You were unconscious yesterday."

"I'm awake today."

"We need you strong. Just rest. Just one more day."

"She's right." I said as I made my way into the kitchen.

"Well, look who finally decided to get up." Michonne teased me.

I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. "Leave me alone. I'm a teenager, we like to sleep and listen to music."

My dad and Michonne laughed.

"You're not much of a morning person, are you?" Michonne asked.

"HELL no." I leaned against the counter. They laughed at me again. I absentmindedly opened the fridge. There was the most random stuff in there. I saw a bottle of maple syrup. "Who puts syrup in the fridge?" I turned and gave them a weird look. "Some weird people used to live here."

"Tell me about it." Michonne said. "You should have seen what was in the bathroom."

"What was in the bathroom?" I asked intrigued.

She glanced at my dad then back at me. "Maybe I'll tell ya later."

I gave her a weird look. "Okay?" I laughed. "What was it? A used Condom?" I joked. "Or maybe sex toys." I grinned.

"Abby." My dad gave me a look. Michonne sort of laughed.

I shook my head and turned back around. "Let's see what's in here." I started opening a cupboard.

"I already checked everywhere." My dad said. I ignored him and continued to look.

"Empty or expired." I said closing the door. One of the other doors opened a little when I closed that one. I turned to them with wide-eyes and pointed. "Did you see that? This house is haunted!" I laughed. "We gotta get outta here before I get taken by the TV people and Carl gets grabbed by a tree."

My dad and especially Michonne laughed pretty hard at that.

"You're funny." Michonne said. She looked at my dad. "She's funny. Wonder where she got it from?"

"Not from me." He raised his eyebrows and smiled. "She's just one of a kind." He smiled at me. I turned so I was facing away from them. I looked down and smiled; that made me feel good inside. I love making others laugh.

* * *

"How long you think you'll be?" My dad asked Michonne as we all stepped out on the porch.

"Fill a couple bags, shouldn't be too long." She replied.

My dad looked at his watch. "It's 8:15 now."

"We'll be back by noon." Michonne said again.

"All right, you follow her lead. You understand?" My dad said to Carl and handed him his Python. Carl just nodded. "Hey." My dad said making my brother look up at him. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just…hungry." Carl replied. We could all tell he's lying, though.

"All right." My dad finally said. "I'll see you in a couple hours."

We watched them leave then went back inside. I sat down on the couch. My dad came over to me and kissed the top of my head. Then sat down next to me and sighed.

"I could have gone too, you know?" I said.

"I wanted you to stay here with me."

"Why?" I innocently looked at my dad.

"…because I figured you could use a rest, too."

I shrugged.

My dad sighed again. "I'm gonna go lay down. See if I can get some sleep." He stood up.

"Okay."

"Hey." He said making me look up at him. "You too, kid."

"What? But…I literally like just woke up."

"Don't want to hear it. You just got over being really sick."

"Well, I'm fine now."

"Don't argue. Upstairs." He pointed.

"Fine." I pouted.

I heard my dad let out a little laugh. He followed me up the stairs.

There were four bedrooms. The "cool room" as Carl called it, the master bedroom and another "kiddie" room. Since my dad would obviously have the master, I choose the other one. It was definitely for a little girl. I cringed when I walked inside. It's too pink in here for me. Oh well, it will have to do for now. I laid down on the bed, I must have been more tired than I thought because I fell asleep before I knew it.

* * *

I was woke up AGAIN by voices! I stirred drowsily.

"No, I'm sorry." A voice said.

"You're a lying coward. That's all you'll ever be." Another voice said.

I realized then that the voices weren't anyone that I recognized. I shot up out of bed.

"No, please, I'm sorry." The voice said again. It sounded like a man, like he was in trouble or something. "Don't do this, please."

"What the hell'd you say to me?"

I peeked out the door. I couldn't see anything. It sounded as though there was more than two people. _How did they get in here?_

"I said don't do this."

"This ain't your business."

I began to grow frantic.

"I'm sorry, man."

"Aw, shut up."

"I'm so sorry." The man cried. "No, don't."

"It's gonna happen."

I glanced over and saw my dad standing in his doorway. He was watching me carefully. I gave him a fearful look. He put his hand up as to tell me "it's okay." I knew it wasn't, though. The voices continued downstairs.

"We can work this out. Please, don't do this."

"It's happening."

"No, no, no, please." The man begged. "Please don't. Please!"

There was a loud noise and the man sounded like he was in pain. _What are they doing to him?_

"You plan on finishing the job?" I heard footsteps and panicked.

"Yeah. I'm getting an earache and I know he's just gonna let his ass squeal."

I quickly but quietly ran across the hall into my dad's room. He said not to, but I couldn't help it. I was scared and didn't know what to do. He then directed me to get under the bed. "Seriously?" I whispered.

"Yes." He glared at me. I quickly did what he said. We both slid under the bed.

"After what he did, the man deserves to bleed."

"Do you think they did something to Carl and Michonne?" I whispered to my dad.

He put a finger to his lips telling me to "shhh."

"Y'all stay down there then." The footsteps got louder and I knew someone was coming up the stairs. I was breathing heavily.

We could see the man's legs as he walked around and checked the rooms. Eventually, he came into our room. I absentmindedly grabbed my dad's hand. He tried to comfort me by rubbing the top of my hand with his thumb.

Suddenly, we heard and felt the bed go down. The man must have laid down on it. _Oh no! How will we get out of this now?_ I looked at my dad and he closed his eyes and put his head down. He was as clueless as I was. In that moment, I knew we were fucked.

* * *

Soon after, we heard snoring, the man had fallen asleep.

"Okay." My dad whispered. "We're gonna quietly slide out, on your side."

I shook my head.

"Yes."

"No." I said terrified. "What if he wakes up?"

"It's the only way." My dad tried to reassure me. It wasn't working. "You have to go first."

I gave him a fearful look.

He touched my face. "You're gonna be fine." He nodded. "You can do it."

I nodded and took a deep breath. I was about to move when we heard footsteps coming up the stairs again. I quickly moved back into my original position.

"Yo." The new guy said. "Comfy?"

"You waking me up to see if I'm comfortable?"

"I want to lie down."

I glanced over at my dad. He looked angry.

Two other bedrooms, bitch."

"Them's kids' beds. I want this one."

"It's claimed."

"I didn't hear it. You gonna have to lay claim somewhere else."

There was a brief pause then it sounded like the two men were fighting. One of them ended up on the floor and my heart just about stopped. I grabbed for my dad's hand again. He got punched in the face, making his head turn our way. He noticed us! He was trying to scream but the other guy was strangling him!

"Len! Len, stop! Stop, Len! Stop!" He yelled.

"Hell, nah."

I was silently praying that we wouldn't get caught.

"Stop!" The guy finally closed his eyes and passed out.

I calmed down a little.

"My bed now, jackoff." The other guy said and laid down on the bed.

I looked at my dad, he tapped my hand. "Don't worry, we'll get another chance." He mouthed. At least I think that's what he said. I'm horrible at reading lips.

* * *

We heard snoring again and knew this other guy had fallen asleep. My dad gave me the signal. I swallowed hard. I was so nervous. What if I make one wrong move and the man hears it and wakes up?

I just took a deep breath and slid out from under the bed as quietly as possible. I did it! I was proud of myself. I stood there waiting for my dad. He glanced at the sleeping man. The guy had a rifle. We need that, but it's too risky.

"Tony, Len, get your asses down here!" Someone yelled from downstairs. The man stirred in his sleep. I gasped and my dad rushed us out of the room. We went into the closest room, which was the "cool one" and tried to find somewhere to hide. We went into the room where the bed was and hid behind the wall.

Suddenly, there was man there. He was standing in the other part of the room bouncing a ball off the wall. I held my breath…and my daddy's hand.

"Yo, you hear me?" One of the guys yelled again.

"Shut the hell up! I'm trying to sleep!" We heard from the bedroom.

The guy walked away and we breathed a sigh of relief. My dad kept a hold on me, though.

"There's a woman shacking up in here!"

"Say what?"

My dad and I shared a looked.

"Come on down!"

"She hot?"

"Don't grab your pecker just yet. She ain't here."

"What the hell you hollering about?"

"Found her shirt. Must have washed it this morning. Smells good."

I followed my dad. He went over to a mantle and grabbed a trophy as a weapon.

"Oh, you found a shirt? She could be miles away by now."

"Why'd she go to all the trouble of washing a shirt when she's just gonna ditch it? She'll be back."

"I call first when she gets here."

I gave my dad a horrified look. He put his hand up.

"Who knows who else she got with her. We need to be ready for anything."

Now that all the men were back downstairs, we went back into the master room to get the gun.

"Len, take the side room."

"Hold on, let me get a gun."

 _Oh shit!_ We left the room hurriedly.

"I'll watch the front den, you've got the other side room."

My dad pulled me into the bathroom with him and closed the door. Luckily, the guy didn't see us. However, I looked to my right and there was a man in the bathroom with us. He was sitting on the toilet messing with his gun.

"Dad!" I yell-whispered.

He looked and quickly pushed me aside and hit the man in the stomach with the trophy. The guy tried to attack my dad. There was a bit of a struggle. My dad was trying to be quiet all the while. He took the strap from the man's gun and wrapped it around the guys' throat trying to strangle him. I was so scared, I didn't know what to do. He reached for a pair of scissors on the counter, but I grabbed them before he could. I was about to stab the man in the head and just end this but my dad told me not to. So, I just stood there and watched in horror while my dad strangled this man.

Finally, he went limp and my dad threw him aside. He pointed the gun at the door ready to shoot anyone who walked in. I never saw my dad like that before. I'm not going to lie, I'm a little frightened.

My dad left the bathroom door ajar because he wanted that man to turn and get out so he might get one of his own people.

We climbed out the window and onto the roof. "Wait here." My dad said to me. "He looked down. "Okay, it's not that far. I'm gonna go first then I'll help you down. Wait for my signal, though, okay?"

I nodded.

I watched him carefully how he got down, he slowly lowered himself. He only held onto the gutter for seconds because it made a loud noise. His feet hit the ground and he crouched down with his gun waiting to see if anyone heard him and was going to come out. No one did.

"Okay." He whispered. "Come on, baby, just like I did."

I nodded and took a deep breath. I did exactly as he did. He grabbed me when I was low enough and pulled me to the side of the porch with him so we would be out of view of the windows. We waited there for a little until we knew no one heard us.

He motioned for me to follow him and we ran around the side of the house until we got to the front porch. We crouched down and waited because we heard footsteps. One of the guys was sitting on the railing right above us. My dad gritted his teeth in anger. We waited there for a little to see if he would leave then we could take off. So far no good, though.

"Come on." We heard him say.

I was a little confused. I looked around my dad and saw Carl and Michonne making their way down the street! I gasped. When I saw my dad's face, I knew he saw the same thing.

He gave me a look and it was like I read his mind. He's going to try and shoot the guy! I gave him a nervous look. He gritted his teeth and prepared himself. I felt scared and kind of like I was going to throw up. Just as he was about to do it, we heard screaming from inside the house.

"Stop him!" Someone yelled.

"Son of a bitch." The guy on the porch said and went inside.

"Kill him! Kill him!" The people inside yelled.

"Come on!" My dad said to me. We ran towards Carl and Michonne. "Go! Go!" He said to them. They turned around and we took off in the opposite direction.

* * *

We were walking on down the tracks. I was silent the whole time. The truth is, I was still a little shook up from all that happened back there. That was too close for comfort.

Carl was digging around for something in his bag. He finally pulled out a can. "Crazy Cheese?" He held it out to Michonne. She laughed and turned it down. I feel like that was like an inside joke or something?

We approached a train car that had a big sign on it.

It read:

 _Terminus. Sanctuary for all. Community for all. Those who arrive survive._

We all looked to my dad. I gave him a nervous look. He put his hand on my back.

"What do you think?" Michonne asked.

My dad was hesitant like he was taking it in. "Let's go." He finally said and nodded "Let's go."

I think my dad could tell there was something bothering me, he put his arm around me and we all began walking in the direction that the sign said this Terminus place was.


	3. Chapter 3

"I think we got about a day's worth of water left." My dad said. We were traveling to Terminus. I was right behind him, but Michonne and Carl were slacking. "We're lucky it's cooled off a little bit, but—" He trailed off when he turned around and saw Carl and Michonne walking along the rails on the tracks. "What are you doing?"

"Winning a bet." Carl laughed.

"In your dreams." Michonne replied to him.

"I'm still on." Carl said then all of a sudden he stumbled a little but was able to catch his balance.

"You spoke too soon, wise guy." Michonne teased him.

My dad looked at me and smiled. I tried to smile back, but I just couldn't. Something was bothering me. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but I'm pretty sure it had something to do with watching my dad kill that man back at that house. Or…was it these killer cramps? My dad looked back at them and started walking closer. "This might go on a while. Maybe we can speed this up."

"Yeah, you're right." Michonne agreed. "Shouldn't be fooling around. We should probably—Carl!" She tried to startle my brother, it didn't work. She ended up falling off herself.

"I win." Carl laughed. "Pay up."

Michonne took two candy bars out of her backpack.

"Is that really the last Big Cat?" Carl looked them over. He reached for it.

"Oh, come on." Michonne whined sounding like a kid.

"Hey, but you said winner's choice." Carl teased.

"Go ahead, take it." Michonne gave in. "It's yours. You won it fair and square."

I looked at my dad. He had a look of amusement on his face, he looked to Carl to see what he was going to do next. My brother broke the chocolate bar in half and handed it to Michonne. She gave him a surprised look.

"Come on, we always share." Carl said nicely.

"Fork it over." Michonne smiled.

My dad looked like he enjoyed the scene. It _was_ a nice moment, unfortunately for me, I couldn't really feel anything right now.

"Would you like a piece, Abby?" Michonne offered.

"No thanks, I'm good." I put my head down.

"You all right?" She asked me again.

"Yeah." Was all I said and began walking again.

"She's still a little shook up from what happened back at that house, I think." My dad said quietly. Still loud enough for me to hear, of course.

"Don't talk about me like I'm not three feet away from you." I said without looking back.

No one said anything after that, but I heard their footsteps and knew they were walking again.

* * *

It was beginning to get dark so we stopped and set up camp in the woods. My dad went to set up a snare while Carl and I tried to build a fire and Michonne was looking for things like cans or bottles or anything that would make noise if bumped into. It was to hook them on a string and tie them to a tree. That way if any walkers came by, they would hit into it and we would hear it. I saw my dad walking over.

"I'm freezing." I shivered and rubbed my arms.

"Where's your jacket?" My dad asked me.

"I don't have one."

He gave me a look then started taking his jacket off. "We gotta stop somewhere and find you one then." He put his jacket on me and then rubbed my arms.

"Thanks." I said. He kissed my head.

Once that was all taken care of, we were sitting around the campfire. Michonne was telling a scary story—well _trying_ to tell a scary story and Carl was laughing. My dad would chime in every once in a while. As for me, I didn't say a word. In fact, I had my back turned to them.

"You're horrible at telling stories." Carl said laughing.

"It wasn't that bad." My dad said.

"No, he's right." Michonne agreed then laughed.

"You know who's really good at telling stories, though?" Carl said. I held my breath. _Please don't say me._

"Who?" Michonne asked.

"My sister."

"Really?" Michonne sounded amused. "Guess she's gonna have to tell one now."

I slightly turned so I was facing them. "No." I shook my head.

"Oh yeah. Come to think of it, I haven't heard you tell a story in a while." My dad just had to say.

"I can't."

"Come on." Carl urged me.

"Look, I said no, okay." I didn't say it mean, but I know they probably took it that way. "Sorry." I said so they wouldn't be mad at me.

There was a brief silence then Carl said, "what's wrong with you?"

"Carl." My dad scolded.

The whole scene made me angry, I could feel my face heating up. I know I shouldn't have but I snapped. "No, it's okay, dad." I sat up. "You wanna know what's wrong with me, kid? I feel like shit from _just_ getting over the WORST sickness I've ever had in my life, not to mention I haven't slept in three days, and once I thought we could rest for a few days, we get chased out by a group of…rapists!" I stood up. "Oh and watching dad strangle some dude was just the cherry on top of it all." I began walking off into the woods.

"Abby. Abby!" I heard my dad calling me. I ignored him and leaned up against a tree and calmed myself down. "Abby." He finally caught up with me. "Abby, you all right?"

I nodded.

He sighed. "Abby, you can't—

"I know." I said cutting him off. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have told 'em." I leaned back against the tree. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I just feel so…touchy." I cried.

"Hey, it's okay. Com'ere." He hugged me, I hugged him back. "It's okay. We're all on edge. And I'm sorry," he let go of me and put his hands on my face, "I'm sorry you had to see that back there. I really am."

"It's okay. I know you had to. You were just…protecting me."

He was silent for a moment. "Yeah, I was. And I'd do it again to make sure you're safe. You and Carl. I NEED both of you to be safe, above anyone else."

I suddenly felt a little guilty.

"Still, I could see how that would bother you…

"No, dad, that's not it…exactly." I shook my head. He was giving me a questioning look. "I'm, uh…having a lady problem that I don't really wanna talk to you about." I finally admitted.

My dad was quiet for a second. "Oh." Things became a little awkward. "Well…you could talk to Michonne—

"I don't really want to talk to anyone." I raised my eyebrows. "But it's okay. I'm fine. Nothing to worry about."

"Okay. Well…as long as you're okay."

I nodded and sighed.

My dad randomly felt my forehead with the back of his hand. "You feel warm. Come sit down."

I rolled my eyes at his fatherly instincts. I was wondering when they were going to kick in. "Yeah." I nodded. He put his hand on my back and we walked back over. Michonne and Carl glanced up when they saw us. "Sorry." I stood there awkwardly. Michonne gave me a small smile. I finally sat down and glanced at my brother. He kept his head down and wouldn't look at me. I tilted my head to look at him. "I said I was sorry. You forgive me?"

He finally looked at me. Eventually, he gave me a half grin which I returned. Then, he handed me a little bag of peanuts.

"I had some already. Those are yours." I turned them down.

Carl then looked to my dad. "Women are nuts." My dad looked shocked.

"Yes, we are." I said. There was a brief silence then…we all busted out laughing. Things turned out to be okay that night.

* * *

"How hungry are you, scale of one to 10?" My dad said. It was the next morning and we were just sitting around the fire again. We were out of food now and we were all hungry.

"Fifteen." Carl said.

"Twenty-eight." Said Michonne.

They all looked to me when I didn't say anything. "Uh, I don't know." I shrugged.

"Really?" Michonne teased.

"I try not to think about it." I admitted. The truth was, I was starving but I think there's more to worry about than food.

"Yeah. That's smart." My dad said. "Still, it's been a while." He stood up. "I'm gonna go check the snares."

"Can I go with you?" Carl asked.

My dad hesitated. "Well, how else are you gonna learn?" Carl jumped up excited. I felt an unwanted feeling of jealousy. "Hey, you two, too." My dad said to Michonne and I. The feeling subsided.

"We'll stay another day or two." My dad said while we were walking to where he set up the snare. "Get some more rest." He looked at me.

"Finish healing up?" Michonne asked him.

"I'm almost there." He said. "We are." He looked at me again. I looked away a little embarrassed.

"We're close now, right?" Carl asked.

"To Terminus?" My dad questioned.

I rolled my eyes. "No, dad, to Mexico." I laughed.

He gave me a look. "Smartass." He shook his head and half smiled. "Yeah. We are."

"When we get there, are we gonna tell them?" Carl said. I gave him a weird look.

"Tell them what?" Michonne asked my unasked question.

"Everything that's happened to us." Carl answered. "All the stuff we've done. Are we gonna tell them the truth?"

 _That's actually a pretty good question._ I looked to my dad.

"We're gonna tell them who we are." My dad stated.

"But how do you say that? I mean…who are we?"

"Kid has a point." I chimed in.

My dad just looked at us. I could tell he didn't know what to say, but Carl still looked at him for an answer. Luckily, a walker came by and distracted us from that conversation. We all pointed our guns at it, Michonne got to it first and killed it with her sword.

"There you go." My dad said once we got to the snare.

"It's a small one." Michonne complained.

"It'll do." I said. "It's better than nothing."

"That's right, sweetheart." My dad said to me. "So, this is just a simple slipknot," he began explaining how the snare works, "tie one on both ends, then you tighten one side to a branch. Now, you see how the ground here is sort of like a funnel shape?"

 _It's a trail?_ I was about to say it, but my brother beat me to it. _"_ It's a trail?"

"That's right." My dad praised. That feeling from earlier was back. "That's where you want to set the noose." I had to think of something to make me sound clever. "So you—

"You hide it with leaves." I cut him off. "Then you put sticks all around it so any animals going by have to run this way…right into the trap." I answered quickly then smiled. They all gave me a shocked look. "Right, daddy?"

He nodded then smiled at me.

"Help!" We heard a voice yell. "Somebody help!"

Carl began running in the direction of the scream.

"Carl." My dad said but he was practically gone. "Carl, stop! Carl!" We all ran after him.

"Get back!" As we got closer we saw it was a man, he was surrounded by walkers. "Back! Help! Get away! Get back! Help! Somebody help! Help me! Get away! No! Get away!"

Carl raised his gun but my dad grabbed him and pulled him back just in time. "We can't help him."

"No! No! No! No!" We had to watch while they swarmed the poor man. Someone stepped on a twig and one of them noticed us.

"We've got to go." Michonne whispered.

The four of us took off onto the road. More walkers were coming in our direction. My dad handed Carl his bag so he and Michonne could fight some of the walkers. I even killed a few.

"Let's go." My dad commanded.

* * *

"Thought maybe there'd be some houses down this way." Michonne said as we were walking down another road. "Maybe even a store. There's got to be some food around here somewhere."

"Hey, look." Carl pointed at a van up ahead. Michonne went to kill a walker while my dad and Carl checked the van to make sure it was clear. That jealousy feeling came back. I know it's stupid and kind of immature of me, but I just can't help it. My dad and I are super close. Now that Carl is getting older, he's going to be spending more and more time with my dad. He deserves to spend time with him, still…I'm jealous.

We began setting up camp as usual.

* * *

My dad, Michonne and I were sitting by the fire. Carl was in the van trying to sleep. I was feeling tired, too, but I wanted to be up with the grown-ups. I leaned against my dad and he had his arm wrapped around me. It felt nice, I felt safe with my dad.

"That was one small rabbit." My dad said.

"It was something." Michonne said. "Got to hand it to the thing. It traveled well."

My dad chuckled, something he doesn't do very often these days.

"Have you noticed that's all we talk about anymore?" I said annoyed. "Food." Even though I hardly ate any of that rabbit.

"I know, baby." My dad said. "I forgot what this feels like."

"Me, too." Michonne agreed.

"I hope we're able to forget again soon." I said quickly.

"We're close." My dad said. Suddenly, there was noise in the woods. My dad was on his feet in a second and Michonne grabbed her sword. I held my breath. We waited about a minute and didn't hear anything else so we just assumed it was nothing.

"Just got to make it through another day." My dad said. "If folks there are taking people in, they have to be strong. They have to have a system."

"I wonder if the whole thing's legit." Michonne said roughly. I looked down in sadness. _What if it's not?_

"Hey, baby?" My dad said to me. "Why don't you try to get some sleep?" He nodded toward the van.

"I can take a hint. You want me to leave." I said standing up.

"No. I want you to get some rest."

"Well…I'll try but I doubt I'll be able to."

My dad sighed. "Well, try at least." He kissed my forehead then sat back down. I took my time getting to the van. They continued their conversation and I was listening.

"We let people in." My dad said.

"We did. So did the Governor." Said Michonne.

"Yeah, it's always the same, isn't it? Don't get to know until we know. Maybe this place isn't even there anymore."

"Oh, dearie me." I heard a voice say. I quickly spun around and saw a man with gray hair holding a gun to my dad's head. I gasped. There was another man by Michonne, she reached for her sword but the man kicked it away. My heart stopped and I reached for my gun.

"Don't even think about it." A man said from right behind me. He pointed his gun at me and I froze. That's when I realized…they were the guys from before! In that house! There were two other guys on the other side of me and a big, fat guy on the other side of the van. He was looking in at Carl. That's five guys and only four of us.

"You screwed up, asshole." The man said to my dad.

My dad was looking right at me. He had a look of terror, anger and frustration on his face. "Don't hurt her." He said quietly.

"You hear me?" The man said again. "You screwed up. Today is a day of reckoning, sir. Restitution. A balancing of the whole damn universe." He laughed. "Shit, and I was thinking of turning in for the night on New Year's Eve. Now who's gonna count down the ball dropper with me, huh? Ten Mississippi. Nine Mississippi. Eight Mississippi."

I was breathing very heavily.

Joe!" A familiar voice said. "Hold up." A man emerged from around the van. It was Daryl! I couldn't believe my eyes! But why is he with them? We locked eyes for a moment then he looked at my dad.

"You're stopping me on eight, Daryl." The gray haired man said. I guess his name's Joe.

"Just hold up." Daryl said again.

"This is the guy that killed Lou, so we got nothing to talk about." The guy behind me said.

 _Lou? That must be the guy my dad strangled._

"The thing about nowadays is we got nothing but time." The Joe guy said. "Say your piece, Daryl."

"These people, you're gonna let 'em go." Daryl started to say. "These are good people."

"Now, I think Lou would disagree with you on that." Joe said. "I'll, of course, have to speak for him and all 'cause your friend here strangled him in a bathroom."

"You want blood, I get it." Daryl continued and threw his crossbow and knife on the ground. "Take it from me, man. Come on."

I gasped. _No, Daryl! What are you doing?_

"This man killed our friend." Joe said. "You say he's good people…See, now that right there is—is a lie. It's a lie!"

The two guys behind me started beating up Daryl. I gasped.

"No!" My dad yelled.

"Teach him, fellas." Joe said. "Teach him all the way."

"Come here, boy." I heard the big, fat guy yell. He grabbed Carl from out the car.

"You leave him be!" My dad yelled.

"Don't touch him!" I screamed.

"Shut up!" The guy that had his gun to my head pushed my head down hard onto the van. "You'll get yours, sweetheart." He said in my ear. It sent chills down my spine and I struggled. "Oh, lookie here." He put his hands up my shirt and squeezed my breasts. I squealed. "Check out 'em titties!" He laughed. I screamed. Tears pricked the corners of my eyes. I knew I was helpless.

"Listen, it was me. It was just me." I heard my dad say.

"See, now that's right." Joe said. "That's not some damn lie. Look, we can settle this. We're reasonable men. First, we're gonna beat Daryl to death. Then we'll have the girls, the little one first. Then the boy. Then I'm gonna shoot you and then we'll be square."

"Stop your squirming." I heard the fat guy that had my brother say. I couldn't see what was going on around me, only hear it. I could hear Daryl getting the shit beat out of him behind me.

I was trying to get away but the man's grip was too strong. "Com'ere, honey." His hands explored my body. I screamed again. I heard a gunshot that stole everyone's attention for a moment. Then he turned back to me. "Let's see what we got down here." He slid his hand down the front of my pants. I was completely helpless. I got the most disgusting feeling and felt like I was going to puke, the only thing I could do was scream. "Oh, that's nice." He said in my ear. He quickly flipped me over and lifted my shirt so that my chest was showing. "No!" I screamed and cried. "Get off me! Get the fuck off me!" I panicked because this might actually happen. He started to lower my pants and that's when I really freaked out. I started screaming bloody murder, arms flailing and legs kicking like crazy.

"Don't make it harder than it needs to be." He laughed. He touched me all over. Once my pants were down, he flipped me back over and slammed my head down on the van. I heard the jingling of his belt. I was looking in the direction that my dad was with that Joe guy. He had my dad's arms pinned.

"What the hell are you gonna do now, sport?" Joe said.

Suddenly, my dad bit the guy's throat out. Everything seemed to stop after that. I was even shocked given the situation I was currently in. Then, Michonne somehow got the gun off the guy that was holding her up and shot him. Then, she shot one of the guys fighting Daryl and the guy trying to rape me. The force made me fall to the ground too. I immediately fixed my clothes. I turned and saw Daryl finish the other guy off. Then, Daryl ran to me and helped me up. I didn't know how to react so I just hugged him and buried my face in his chest.

"Shhh. It's all right." He soothed me.

"I'll kill him." A voice made me look up. The fat guy was still alive. He held a knife to Carl's throat. "I'll— I'll kill him!"

"Let the boy go." Michonne pointed her gun at him.

I held onto Daryl tightly.

"He's mine." My dad said and starting walking over to him.

"Stay back." The guy said and dropped Carl. "Stay— Please—" My dad stabbed him in the stomach with the knife and slowly brought the knife up to his neck. My eyes widened. The man's screams making me sick. My dad continued to stab the guy in the throat over and over again even after he was dead. We all watched, I couldn't take my eyes away from the gruesome sight. I have never seen him like this before. I slowly let go of Daryl and we looked at each other. He had this look on his face like he wanted to prevent me from watching this but didn't know what he should do about it.

Finally, my dad stopped. He leaned over panting with his hands on his knees. He looked up at us covered in blood. We all just kind of stared not really knowing what to do or say.


	4. Chapter 4

I was sitting inside the van in the passenger seat. I sat there with my knees to my chest and my chin on my knee. Michonne was with Carl in the back, he rested his head in her lap. My dad sat outside all night, not getting any sleep at all. Then again, I think the only one that did sleep was Carl. I just laid my head back in the seat, not thinking of anything. Not a damn thing. Just blankly stared out the window.

"Are you all right, Abby?" Michonne whispered to me. I didn't respond. I couldn't.

I saw Daryl hand my dad something outside. "We should save it to drink." My dad said.

"You can't see yourself, they can." Daryl replied.

I absentmindedly listened to their conversation.

"I didn't know what they were." Daryl said.

"How'd you wind up with them?" My dad asked.

"I was with Beth. We got out together. I was with her for a while." Daryl paused.

"Is she dead?" My dad asked.

"She's just gone." He answered sadly. "After that, that's when they found me. I mean, I knew they were bad, but they had a code. It was simple. Stupid, but it was something. It was enough."

"And you were alone." My dad assured him.

"They said they was lookin' for some guy." Daryl continued. "Last night they said they spotted him. I was hangin' back. I was gonna leave. But I stayed. That's when I saw it was you four. Right when you saw me. I didn't know what they could do."

"It's not on you, Daryl." My dad said to him. "Hey. It's not on you. You being back with us here, now, that's everything. You're my brother."

My eyes casted down. There was brief pause.

"Hey, what you did last night…anybody would 'a done that." Daryl said.

"No, not that."

"Somethin' happened. That ain't you."

"Daryl, you saw what I did to Tyreese. It ain't all of it, but that's me. That's why I'm here now. That's why my kids are. I want to keep them safe. That's all that matters."

Hearing those words…something…changed in me. I don't know if it was for the good or bad, but just something was different. I didn't care what my dad did to those guys. They deserved it. But I can't get the thought of almost getting raped out of my mind.

* * *

We went on our way to Terminus. Everyone was pretty quiet, especially Carl and I. I'm not so sure about this place anymore. I honestly just don't care.

"We're getting close." My dad informed us. "Be there before sundown. Now we head through the woods. We don't know who they are."

We walked through the woods and up to a fence. Just beyond the train tracks was a long building, it must have been a train station. That's it. That's the place. I zipped my jacket up as far as it could go and put my hood up. Crossing my arms in front of my chest, I felt uneasy.

"We all spread out, watch for a while, see what we see, and get ready. We all stay close." My dad said. "You want to stick with me?" He asked Carl.

"It's all right." Carl said and walked off with Michonne.

I stood there with one hand on the fence just staring at the building. I really couldn't see anything.

"Hey," my dad said to me.

"I don't know about this place anymore."

He gave me a puzzled look.

"It just…I don't know." I looked at him with a blank expression.

"You okay, Abby?" I could see and hear the clear concern from him.

I swallowed hard. "Sure."

"Abigail."

"No." I admitted.

He sighed and crouched down. "I'm sorry you had to see that…again. I—

"Dad, I don't care about that." I snapped. "I know you just want to keep us safe. You told me already." I looked down. "But that guy…his hands were all over me." I started to cry. "I really thought…I really thought…"

"It didn't." My dad said. "Hey, you're okay, now. It didn't happen, okay?"

I nodded but the tears were still falling. "He still touched me."

"Com'ere." He held me tightly while I just cried into his chest. We stayed like that for a long time, until I was calmed down. I let go of him and took a deep breath.

"Are you gonna be all right?"

I nodded and sniffled.

"I love you, sweetie." He wiped my tears away with his thumb.

I gave him a sad smile. "I love you, too." I glanced over and saw Daryl looking at me. I looked away shyly. I feel a little awkward around him now because he probably saw me naked last night. I know he had to have seen my butt, and maybe even my sex.

"You okay?" He asked me.

"Yeah." I looked down. I could feel my face heat up.

"I'm sorry that…happened last night."

I finally looked up at him. "It's okay. It wasn't your fault." I reassured him. "You couldn't have known they were like that." I paused. "I'm just glad…that…it didn't happen."

Daryl nodded at me. He put his hand on my back so I gave him a small smile.

Just then, I realized that my dad had dug a hole by a tree. He put some of our weapons into a duffel bag then put it in the hole. Daryl and I gave him a strange look. "Just in case." He said to our unasked question. He buried the bag. My dad sure is smart.

* * *

We hopped the fence and ran across the tracks to the building. My dad suggested we go through the back door, because he's smart, it was safe so far.

There was a woman inside that was speaking into a microphone. "Terminus— those who arrive survive." She said. "Follow the tracks to the point where all lines intersect. There are maps at the crossings to help guide you with your journey. Sanctuary for all. Community for all. Those who arrive survive." We walked closer to her and noticed there was other people working, too.

"Terminus, sanctuary for all. Community for all."

"Hello." My dad said to her. She didn't notice us at first.

"Those who s—

"Hello." My dad said again getting everyone's attention.

"Well, I bet Albert is on perimeter watch." One guy said. "You here to rob us?"

"No." My dad answered. "We wanted to see you before you saw us."

"Makes sense." The guy said. "Usually we do this where the tracks meet." He cleared his throat and walked closer to us. "Welcome to Terminus. I'm Gareth. Looks like you've been on the road for a good bit."

"We have." My dad did all the talking for us. "Rick. That's Abby, Carl, Daryl, Michonne."

None of us said anything.

"You're nervous." Gareth said. "I get it. We were all the same way. We came here for sanctuary. That what you're here for?"

"Yes."

"Good. You found it. Hey, Alex." Gareth called another guy over. "This isn't as pretty as the front. We got nothing to hide, but welcome wagon is a whole lot nicer. Alex will take you, ask you a few questions. Uh, but first, we need to see everyone's weapons. If you could just lay them down in front of you."

We all looked to my dad. He nodded. "All right."

We all began putting our weapons on the floor.

"I'm sure you understand." Gareth said.

"Yes, I do." My dad said.

Gareth and the other guy began patting us down to check for any hidden weapons.

"I'd hate to see the other guy." Alex said when he saw the blood on my dad's clothes.

"You would." My dad said.

"They deserve it?"

"Yes." Carl answered quickly.

When it was my turn, I cringed when Gareth touched me. "Aren't you the pretty one." He winked at me. Normally, I would be flattered but considering I almost got raped last night, it made me feel a little uncomfortable. I didn't miss the look my dad gave me either.

"Just so you know, we aren't those kinds of people, but we aren't stupid either." Gareth said. "And you shouldn't be stupid enough to try anything stupid. As long as everyone's clear on that, we shouldn't have any problems. Just solutions."

No one said anything.

"Okay." Alex said. "Follow me." We all followed him out a door, we were outside but still in the building. I don't know how to explain it.

"So how long's this place been here?" Daryl asked.

"Since almost the start." Alex said. "When all the camps got overrun, people started finding this place. I think it was instinct, you know? Follow a path. Some folks were heading to the coast, others out west or up north, but they all wound up here." He led us over to a woman that was cooking.

"Hi." She said. "Heard you came in the back door. Smart. You'll fit right in here."

"Hey, Mary, would you fix each of these new folks a plate for me?" Alex said to her. "Why do you do it?" Michonne asked. "Why do you let people in?"

"The more people become a part of us, we get stronger." Alex responded. "That's why we put up the signs, invite people in. It's how we survive."

"Here." The woman handed Carl a plate of meat. It looked kind of gross.

All of a sudden, my dad walked up and knocked the plate out of my brother's hands and grabbed Alex around the neck, putting his gun to his head and pulling something out of the guy's pocket. We all had our weapons up in a second. I was breathing heavily.

"Where the hell did you get this watch?" My dad yelled.

For a second, everything seemed to stop. Everyone looked at us.

"Where the hell did you get this watch?" My dad repeated. _That looks like the watch Hershel gave to Glenn._

"You want answers? You want anything else? You get 'em when you put down the gun." Alex yelled.

"I see your man on the roof with a sniper rifle." My dad said. "How good's his aim?" They ignored his question. "Where'd you get the watch? WHERE'D YOU GET THE WATCH?"

"Don't do anything! I have this! You just put it down." Alex yelled. "You put it down! You want to listen to me. There's a lot of us."

"Where did you get the watch?" My dad pressed.

"I got it off of a dead one. I didn't think he'd need it."

"What about the riot gear? The poncho?" My dad pointed at people wearing that stuff. My eyes widened. _That riot gear came from the prison! Does that mean our people are here?_

"Got the riot gear off a dead cop." Gareth said. "Found the poncho on a clothesline."

"Gareth, we can wait." Alex said.

"Shut up, Alex."

"You talk to me." My dad said.

"What's there left to say? You don't trust us anymore."

"Gareth." Alex cried.

"Shut up." Gareth snapped at Alex.

"Gareth, please."

"It's okay. It's okay." Gareth put his hand up. "Rick, what do you want?"

"Where are our people?"

"You didn't answer the question." Gareth made a gesture with his hand.

My dad spun just in time for Alex to get shot instead of him. They started shooting at us.

"Go, go!" He yelled. "Abby! Carl! Get down, now!" He pulled both of us to him. "Go!" He yelled to us. We began running.

"Come on! Come on! Here!" My dad said. "Come on, this way!"

We ran around a corner.

"Help! Help!" We heard people yelling from inside a train car. "Let us out!"

"What the hell?" Daryl looked at us.

"Keep going!" My dad yelled.

We ran around until we got to a door. We went inside and there was this creepy room completely lit by candle light and there was writings everywhere with random items on the floor.

"What the hell is this place?" I asked in a panic.

"These people, I don't think they're trying to kill us." Michonne said.

"No, they were aiming at our feet." My dad stated.

"There." Michonne pointed to a door. As soon as we got close enough to it, it was slammed shut and locked.

 _Shit!_ I looked around. There was another door. "There!" I pointed.

We ran to it and went out, we were back outside. Suddenly, we were surrounded. There were so many people! They all had their guns up! We all stopped in kind of a circle.

"Drop your weapons! Now!" Gareth yelled to us.

We knew we were screwed and didn't have a choice. We reluctantly threw down our weapons. I tired to be slick and hide my knife up my sleeve.

"I saw that, sweetheart, drop it!" He said. I turned and looked at him. "Yeah, I was talking to you!"

I glared at him and took the knife out of my sleeve dropping it to the ground.

"Now! Ringleader, go to your left." Gareth said. "The train car, go."

My dad didn't budge.

"You do what we say, your kids go with you. Anything else, they die and you end up in there anyway."

My dad looked at us then slowly made his way to the train car. He kept glancing back at us.

"Now the archer." Gareth said referring to Daryl.

Daryl shot him a glare before walking in the same direction as my dad.

"Now the samurai." Gareth said referring to Michonne.

Michonne repeated Daryl's reaction and movements.

"All right." Gareth said. "The sly one. The girl, go ahead next."

I took a deep breath before slowly making my way over to the others.

"Stand at the door, ringleader, archer, samurai, sly girl in that order." Gareth commanded. I finally caught up and stood behind Michonne. I looked back and saw Carl standing there. _Why didn't he call my brother yet?_

"My son!" My dad yelled.

"Go, kid." Gareth finally said to Carl. Carl very slowly walked over to us.

"Ringleader, open the door and go in."

"I'll go in with him."

"Don't make us kill him now."

My dad took a second but then did what Gareth said. We all took turns walking in. My dad put his arm out for me once I was inside, he did the same to Carl. He embraced us quickly.

"Rick?" A voice said. We all turned to see Glenn! And Maggie was there, too! Along with Sasha and Bob!

A wide grin spread across my face. I couldn't believe it! I was a little disappointed that Tyreese wasn't there.

"You're here." My dad said. "You're here."

I just now noticed the other people in there. There was a tall red headed guy, a weird looking dude with a mullet and two other girls.

"They're our friends." Maggie said. "They helped save us."

"Yeah." Daryl said. "Now they're friends of ours."

"For however long that'll be." The red headed man said.

"No." My dad said making everyone look at him. "They're gonna feel pretty stupid when they find out."

"Find out what?" The red headed man said again.

We all waited to hear what my dad was going to say. Finally, he got an angry look on his face and said, "They're fucking with the wrong people."


	5. Chapter 5

"They seemed nice enough, but I was ready to go." Abraham, the red headed guy, said. "We just got here, but, damn, it was time to go. When I told them about D.C, a wink and a nod from the head asshole in charge, they pulled their guns and it was right back to our regularly scheduled shitstorm."

"Before they put you in here, you didn't see Tyreese?" Sasha asked Michonne.

"No." She replied.

"Good."

"Black car with a white cross painted on it." Daryl said referring to who took Beth. "I tried to follow it. I tried."

"But she's alive?" Maggie asked him.

"She's alive."

We briefly caught up then it was time to get to work. We were trying to use whatever we could find to try and fight with and escape.

We heard the static of a radio then voices.

"All right, got four of them pricks comin' our way." Daryl informed us. He was looking through a small hole in the wall of the train car.

"Y'all know what to do." Abraham said.

"Go for their eyes first. Then their throats." My dad said.

Carl and I were standing next to each other sort of in the back. I was a little nervous but now that there were so many of us, it gave me some comfort. Still, you never know what people could do. You just have to be ready. I had my belt off and wrapped around my fist. I could use the buckle kind of like brass knuckles. I doubt I'll even get close enough to them to use it, plus they have a lot of guns. A fist is useless in a gun fight. However, it's all I have so I'll just have to make do.

"Put your backs to the walls on either side of the car, now!" A man outside yelled.

My dad looked back at Carl and I and nodded. We returned his nod. Everyone stood at the ready.

Suddenly, we heard footsteps on the roof and simultaneously looked up. The top opened up a little and something that looked like a can was dropped in. "Move!" Abraham yelled loudly. Panic set through me and I froze. All of a sudden, the train car was filled with smoke. I began coughing and moved as far back against the wall as I could. The doors opened, I could hear footsteps and yelling but couldn't see anything. I could tell there was a bit of a struggle going on. I hoped everyone was okay. Then, just as fast as everything happened, it stopped. The doors closed, we were in darkness again, but at least the smoke was pretty much gone. I could see Carl next to me and calmed down a little. It was quiet at first. People were coughing.

"Is everyone okay?" Someone, I think Abraham, said.

"They took Rick and Daryl!" Michonne shouted.

I gasped. "What? My dad's gone?" I was frantic.

"Glenn and Bob are gone, too." Maggie stated. She glanced at Sasha who looked as worried as she did.

* * *

"Someone hit them." Michonne said.

"Maybe our people got free." Sasha said.

"Excuse me." Eugene, the guy with the mullet, said. He pushed them out of the way and crouched down by the wall.

"What the hell are you doing?" Rosita asked him. She was one of the girls that was with them.

"I might be able to use this shell to compromise the door." Eugene said. "From the sound of things, there may not be anybody left to open it."

"Eugene, I'm sorry, but shut up." Tara said. She's the other chick I didn't know.

"Okay." Eugene said. I snickered at him. There was just something about him, he was off.

"Hey." Carl said. "My dad's gonna be back. They all are."

"They are." Maggie agreed. "And we need to get ready to fight our way out with them when they do."

We could hear the snarling of walkers then a woman screaming followed by gunshots and more screaming.

"It sounded like a bomb." I said referring to the loud explosion we heard earlier. I looked toward the door then back at them. "I believe in my dad and the others, but…it sounds like a damn war out there."

No one said anything but I could tell from the looks on their faces that they agreed with me. I began to regret saying anything. The uncertainty was getting to me.

"Still we need to be ready." Maggie said. She glanced at me as she walked passed.

* * *

I listened to the gunfire still going on outside. I wish I knew so badly what was going on. I really hope they're all okay. If anything happened to my dad, I don't know what I would do. Just like he said to me, he wants Carl and I safe, well I want him to be safe.

"What's the cure, Eugene?" Sasha said out of nowhere. We all looked at her then to him. I was curious to know, too. Eugene claims he knows how to stop this whole thing, with the walkers. This Abraham guy wants to get him to Washington D.C. so he can cure it.

"It's classified." Eugene replied. I gave him an annoyed look. _Really?_

"We don't know what's gonna happen." Sasha snapped.

"You leave him be." Abraham narrowed his eyes at her.

"We need to keep workin'." Maggie said, I think to try and make peace.

"Yeah, but it's time to hear it." Sasha said. "'Cause we don't know what's coming next."

"What's next is we get out of this." Tara decided to chime in.

"Even if I told you all," Eugene started, "even if I provided step-by-step instructions complete with illustrations and a well-composed FAQ and I went red-ring, the cure would still die with me."

"I'm not gonna let that happen." Abraham said.

"The best-case scenario, we step out into a hellstorm of bullets, fire, and walkers. I'm not fleet of foot." Eugene said again. "I sure as hell can't take a dead one down with sharp buttons and hella confidence."

"Yeah, but we can and we will." Michonne said. "You don't owe us anything. Not yet. But we just want to hear it."

"You don't have to." Rosita tried to reassure us.

"I'd kinda like to know, too." I said just to be saying something.

There was a brief pause. Eugene sat up slowly and looked at all of us carefully. My eyes widened a bit. _He's really going to tell us!_

"I was part of a 10-person team at the Human Genome Project to weaponize diseases to fight weaponized diseases." He began. "Pathogenic microorganisms with pathogenic microorganisms. Fire with fire. Interdepartmental drinks were had, relationships made, information shared. I am keenly aware of all the details behind fail-safe delivery systems to kill every living person on this planet. I believe with a little tweaking on the terminals in D.C, we can flip the script. Take out every last dead one of them. Fire with fire. All things being equal, it does sound pretty badass." Eugene finished.

We all just stood where we were dumbfounded. That…literally told us nothing. _Figures!_

"Yeah, um…" I rubbed the back of my head. "You lost me at… _pathogenic microorganisms."_

"Hmm…at least I'm not the only one." Tara said.

"So let's get back to work." Maggie said.

Suddenly, we heard banging on the walls outside and all looked at the door. It opened and we jumped up. It was my dad! "Come on! Fight to the fence!" He yelled.

"Do not leave his side!" Abraham yelled to Rosita, he was talking about protecting Eugene, I believe.

We all ran out of the train car.

"Abby! Carl!" My dad said to us. We ran to him and once he saw that were we all right, he told everyone to come on!

We all ran toward the fence fighting walkers along the way. We jumped over the fence and headed into the woods. That was super close. Too close!

"Right here." Daryl said when we got back to the spot where my dad buried the duffel.

"The hell are we still around here for?" Abraham said roughly.

"Guns, some supplies." My dad said while unburying the bag of weapons. "Go along the fences. Use the rifles. Take out the rest of 'em."

It sounded good to me, but apparently not to everyone else. They all gave each other glances.

"What?" Tara was the first to say.

"They don't get to live." Said my dad.

"Rick, we got out." Glenn said. "It's over."

"It's not over till they're all dead." My dad said again. I nodded in agreement with him. As much as I didn't want to go back there, I always agree with my dad. I believe that he knows the right thing to do and I trust his judgements.

"The hell it isn't." Rosita snapped. "That place is on fire. Full of walkers."

"I'm not dicking around with this crap." Abraham said.

"We just made it out." Maggie spoke now. "The fences are down. They'll run or die."

My dad sighed and looked down. Everyone was going against him so he didn't have a choice. We weren't going back. I was going to say something to my dad, but I thought I saw someone out of the corner of my eye. I looked and couldn't believe what I was seeing! It was Carol! But how? My dad sent her away.

Daryl was the first to react. He ran to her and they hugged, those two had gotten close. I wondered briefly if they hooked up or something a while back, because of the way they were acting, and never told anyone. I quickly shook that thought. I'm pretty sure if that happened we would know about it. Besides, they were just really good friends.

My dad went over to her next. "Did you do that?" He asked her. They both laughed then my dad hugged her. I smiled. She saved us all.

"You have to come with me." Carol said to us.

* * *

We followed Carol to what looked like a little cabin or something just up ahead. I saw a door open and a man walked out holding a baby. Something in my brain clicked. It was Judith! And she was with Tyreese!

My dad, Carl and I ran to them. My dad grabbed her and held her close. Sasha ran to her brother, Tyreese. _Those two are cute._ I thought.

My dad pulled both of us close to him. We were so happy to have our Judy back. I smiled at her and kissed her forehead.

* * *

Judith started to cry so I offered to take her from my dad. He handed her to me and I held her close like he did. He went to talk to Daryl.

"I don't know if the fire is still burning." My dad said.

"It is." Daryl said.

"Yeah. We need to go."

"Yeah, but where?" I said butting in.

"Somewhere far away from there." My dad stated. He began walking away and the others followed.

"We'll talk to him." I heard Abraham say quietly. I looked over at him with a strange look. "Not just yet." He was talking to Rosita, but about what?

"You want me to take her?" Carl asked interrupting my thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Judith."

"Oh. Yeah, sure." I shrugged and handed her over. I looked back over where Abraham and Rosita were standing, but they were gone. I just pushed the thought out of my mind and followed everyone else. I ended up in the back. We were back on the train tracks and headed into the woods. I saw my dad stop by a Terminus sign that was nearby, he picked up some mud and wrote _No_ in front of the word _Sanctuary._ He saw me looking at him so I smiled. He just put his arm across my shoulders and we ran into the forest to catch up with everyone else.

I'm glad we're all back together plus the new people we gained. Even though we lost a lot back at the prison and we don't have a home right now, I think we're stronger than ever. And we will continue to get stronger. Together we are one! Together we can do anything! Together we will survive!

* * *

 **Hello everyone! So, that's the end :( But if you want more Abby, I have two more stories that focuses on her** **character. It's called, Abby, and the other is Diamond Heart. Check those out if you want! I would really appreciate that :D Also, thank you for the reviews, favs and follows! It means a lot! Please leave a review and tell me what you thought of the end and the story in general! I would love to hear from you :)**


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